MONTLIGEON,
ONE OF THE SHRINES OF WESTERN FRANCE
Around MONTLIGEON ; 4 POSSIBLE TOURS
1- NORMANDY
– BRITTANY
•
Sainte-Anne d’Auray (Morbihan) : place of the apparition of St. Anne,
the mother of Mary; this shrine is dear to the hearts of all Bretons. According
to tradition, in 1625 St. Anne appeared to Nicolazic, a farm worker, to ask
him to find her statue and to build a church in her honour. Today, St. Anne
still figures at the top of the steeple of the basilica whose height is increased
by a stone spire. This basilica was visited by Pope John Paul II in September
1996. The traditional ‘pardon’ of Sainte-Anne d’Auray, on 26
July, attracts many Bretons and pilgrims, but people come here throughout
the year to ask the grandmother of Jesus to protect their families or to give
them the gift of a child.
• Mont-Saint-Michel
(Manche) : The archangel Michael has been venerated on this rocky islet
since the 9th century, after he had appeared to the local bishop in a dream.
This place had a reputation for beauty but it is no longer so charming because
of the muddle of Romanesque then Gothic buildings superimposed on each other
in the course of the centuries. The spire of the magnificent Gothic abbey
is dominated by a golden St. Michael, overcoming the dragon. Benedictine monks
still live on the Mount. There is daily Mass at the abbey at mid-day.
• Our
Lady of Deliverance (Calvados) :
A few kilometres north of Caen and near the “Côte de Nacre”
[Pearl Coast], the two spires of the basilica of Our Lady of Deliverance mark
the most ancient pilgrimage in Normandy. You must visit the basilica and the
crypt.
• Pontmain
(Mayenne) :
The Blessed Virgin appeared to five children from this little hamlet in the
Normandy marshes, one bitterly cold January night in 1871, as the Prussian
troops were at the gates of the nearby town of Laval. Her message was an invitation
to pray with confidence : “But pray, my children, my Son will allow Himself
to be moved. God will answer your prayers shortly”. The Armistice was
signed a few days later. The village of Pontmain became a high point of Marian
prayer. The neo-gothic Basilica is beautiful. You can also visit the barn
from where the young visionaries saw the Blessed Virgin.
• Lisieux
(Calvados) : It was there that “little Thérèse”
lived, from the age of 4 until her death at 24, in the Carmel of Lisieux.
A huge basilica has been built there and crowds flock there, especially for
the feast of St. Thérèse, on 1st October. One can also visit
the Carmel, where the saint’s body is displayed in a glass shrine. and
Les Buissonets, her childhood home.
2- AROUND LISIEUX (IN 2 DAYS) :
• CAEN : famous memorial; Our Lady of Deliverance.
• ARROMANCHES and the Normandy landing beaches.
• LISIEUX : the town immortalised by St. Thérèse.
• DREUX : royal chapel.
• CHARTRES : incomparable cathedral.
• ALENÇON : house where St. Thérèse was born; her baptismal font, in the church of Notre Dame.
• LA CHAPELLE-MONTLIGEON : Our Lady of Montligeon.
3- FROM PARIS
TO MONT SAINT MICHEL (IN 5 DAYS)
•
PARIS : Notre Dame de Paris, Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Miraculous Medal
Chapel.
• CHARTRES : incomparable cathedral.
• LA CHAPELLE-MONTLIGEON : Our Lady of Montligeon.
• ALENÇON : house where St. Thérèse was born and
her baptismal font.
• PONTMAIN : village visited by the Virgin Mary.
• MONT SAINT MICHEL : one of the 7 wonders of the world recorded as a
world heritage site. The “pearl” of the West.
4- TOWARDS
THE BANKS OF THE LOIRE AND THE CENTRAL REGION :
•
LISIEUX :
• LA CHAPELLE-MONTLIGEON : Our Lady of Montligeon..
• BLOIS : Our Lady of the Trinity; famous château.
• PELLEVOISIN : Shrine of Our Lady of Mercy.
• ISSOUDUN : Basilica of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart.
• NEVERS : Souvenirs of St. Bernadette.
